Then moved into building and selling and keeping spec houses as rentals in AZ. 

Investing out of state in the KCMO area sounds like a smart move; it’s such an interesting market with plenty of potential.

@Chris Mahoo Even without qualifying for Real Estate Professional Status (REPS), long-term rentals offer key benefits like depreciation deductions over 27.5 years, deductible expenses (e.g., mortgage interest, repairs), and up to $25,000 in passive loss deductions if your MAGI is under $150K.

That would be the best move for you to find good contractors and reliable ones for your projects.

Spend a little more money than you might have been planning to, buy in a better area (i.e. not a “turn key” 100k house off the mls), and self manage.

There’s no specific law mandating general liability insurance, but it’s a smart move to have it.

. - will it influence property taxes once we move to conventional loan in 3 yrs? 

What would be the best loan option for purchasing another property under my name that I’ll be moving into as my new primary residence? 

So, in actuality the divide between “good” PMs and “bad” ones is probably no different than any other service provider, be it real estate broker, mortgage originator, etc.The key word I has in my sentence was MAY; as in MAY be hazardous to your financial health.  

At least those are my observations.If you’re comfortable knowing the OOS risks, and still want to move forward, then great job, now you know what you’re getting into, which is part of due diligence.